First Date
by TessaStarDean
Summary: Jack and Chloe's first date gets interrupted...


"Bauer."

"Hi Jack."

A smile spread over his face at the sound of her voice. "Hey, Chloe. How are you?"

"I have to cancel tonight."

His smile disappeared, and a knot built in the pit of his stomach. "Oh."

"I really want to go though," Chloe reassured him.

Jack frowned in confusion. "Then why are you canceling?"

"It's Anna. I think she has the flu." She could hear his sigh of relief through the phone. "Jack?"

"What if we just changed our plans?"  
"What do you mean?"

"I could come over and cook for you. That way you wouldn't have to leave Anna."

"Are you sure? I mean, I know that's probably not how you envisioned our first date."

He smiled. "Chloe, I just want to spend time with you."

"Okay then."

"Yeah?" Jack asked.

"Yeah."

"Alright, I'll be there at six."

As Chloe hung up, she couldn't help the smile that blossomed on her face.

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"Hey," Chloe greeted when she opened the door.

"Hey."

She looked down at her sweatpants and hoodie. "I'm sorry, I didn't have a chance to clean up yet. If you give me a couple minutes –"

Jack chuckled, holding a hand up to stop her. "Don't worry about it, Chloe. I want you to be comfortable. Besides," he added, leaning in and kissing her cheek, "I think you look beautiful no matter what you're wearing."

Blushing furiously, she shut the door and led him into the kitchen. As he set the grocery bags down on the counter, he looked around.

"Where's Anna?"

Chloe sighed. "In bed. Finally."

"You hungry?"

"Starving," she admitted.

Jack smiled. "Then sit down and I'll make us some dinner."

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"This is really nice, Jack," Chloe murmured as they ate the pasta dinner he had made them.

"I'm glad you like it," he smiled. "Not too bad for a first date, is it?"

She shook her head, her smile mirroring his. "This might be the best first date I've ever had."

"Me too," he said quietly, staring deeply into her eyes.

Blushing again, Chloe dropped her eyes back to her plate. But Jack reached to take her hand in his, entwining their fingers and bringing her gaze back to his. They sat like that for a long time, Jack rubbing his thumb over his knuckles, searching for the words that would tell her exactly how he felt. Taking a deep breath, he opened his mouth.

"Momma?"

They both turned to see Anna standing in the doorway, rubbing her eyes.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" Chloe asked, worry in her voice.

The little girl nodded, her eyes resting on Jack. "Hi Uncle Jack."

"Hi Anna," he said quietly, a smile on his face as he leaned forward.

"Were you going to take my mommy out for dinner tonight?"

He nodded. "Yeah, but you weren't feeling good, so we decided to stay in."

"I'm sorry."

"Oh no, sweetheart," Jack said. Reaching out his arms, he picked her up and settled her against his chest. "You didn't do anything wrong. We just want you to feel better."

"My tummy hurts."

"I'm very sorry to hear that," he said, running his fingers through her hair. "Maybe you should have some ginger ale and crackers –"

Before Jack could finish his sentence, Anna opened her mouth and threw up all over his shirt. Chloe shot up, gasping in embarrassment and pulling her daughter off of Jack as fast as she could. Stuttering apologies, she stopped when she realized that he was laughing.

"Chloe," he said. "Don't worry about it. Get her cleaned up and back in bed. I've got spare clothes in my car. If I can borrow your shower, I'll be all set."

She sighed, cradling Anna to her chest. "Of course you can use my shower."

"Good." Standing up, Jack walked over and placed a kiss on the little girl's forehead before putting one of Chloe's cheek as well. "Take her up, and I'll meet you back in the living room when I'm done."

Without another word, he grabbed his keys and headed out to his car.

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She waited for him on the couch, trying not to fidget. Anna had gone back to sleep quickly after Chloe bathed her and put her in clean pajamas. The little girl had been so sad about getting sick on Uncle Jack, but her mother had eventually been able to convince her that he wasn't mad at her.

When she came back downstairs, Chloe had been pleasantly surprised to see that Jack had cleared the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher before getting himself into the shower. That man never ceased to amaze her.

Sitting on the couch, the sound of the water running in the bathroom slowly lulled her. She realized how tired she was from taking care of Anna all day, and her eyes drifted shut.

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When Jack finally emerged from the bathroom, he found Chloe asleep, stretched out on the couch. Sitting on the coffee table, he watched her for a long time, just enjoying the sight of her. It still amazed him how strong she was, taking care of Anna on her own after Morris left with another woman. When Jack had finally gotten up the courage to ask her out, he hadn't expected her to say yes so readily. But luckily for him, she hadn't given up on him yet.

He reached out and gently shook her shoulder, waking her up. She frowned as she realized where she was.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled. "I guess I'm more tired than I thought."

"It's okay," he said quietly. "Go to bed."

"No," she protested. "I'm fine. I'm up –"

"Chloe, you're exhausted."

Unable to look him in the eye, she shrugged. "I don't want you to go yet."

Smiling, he brushed the hair out of her face. "I don't have to." Pausing, he looked at the couch. "Think you could fit me on that couch too?"

She met his eyes then, nervousness and hope mingled on her face. Hesitating only slightly, she nodded and pushed herself up. Jack grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch and laid down, pulling Chloe until she lay next to him. Holding her tightly, he covered them with the blanket and kissed her hair.

"I'm sorry our date got ruined," she murmured as she snuggled closer to his chest.

"It wasn't ruined, Chloe. I had a great time."

"My daughter puked on you."

"She's sick."

"We didn't even get to kiss."

He smiled at that. Nudging her with his nose, he got her to open her eyes and look at him.

"We can take care of that now," he whispered.

Before she had a chance to respond, Jack leaned in and kissed her slowly. Chloe sighed against his lips, one of her hands tangling in the front of his shirt as she pushed herself closer. Tilting his head, Jack deepened the kiss, eliciting a deep moan from Chloe as his tongue made contact with hers.

When he finally pulled back, they were both breathless. Smiling, Jack placed another kiss on her forehead and pulled her tighter against him.

"How was that?" he asked.

Closing her eyes, Chloe rested her head against his chest.

"I think it makes up for the puke."

Jack chuckled, shutting his eyes as well.

"It most definitely does."


End file.
